We are NOT authorized by Govt of India for Yellow Fever Vaccination

Monday, September 26, 2016

Q: Hi Sir,I am suffering from Psoarisis and was taking medicine Psorid 100 mg twice a day for 2 months but from last 12 days I have not taken the same. And am planning not to take this medicine anymore. Please advise if I can take the yellow fever vaccination as am planning to go Africa during mid october.

Pls adviseThanks

A: Hi

Psorid contains Cyclosporine, an immune suppressant medication.

You should consider taking the Yellow Fever vaccination at least 3 months after stopping the treatment.

Friday, September 23, 2016

Bioma Julie shares her experience with a Red Cross volunteer after being treated for yellow fever. Mirabelle Enaka/IFRC

By Mirabelle Enaka Kima, IFRC

Bioma Julie is a young mother of two, she lives in the Massina I neighbourhood in Kinshasa. She was diagnosed some months back with yellow fever. Today, not only has she regained her health, but she is also well informed about the disease, thanks to the massive information dissemination and sensitization activities conducted by volunteers of the Red Cross of the Democratic Republic of the Congo ( DRC). As part of the preventive immunization campaign launched in the country in August, Red Cross volunteers visited remote communities and went door-to door to raise awareness about yellow fever, encouraged families to get vaccinated, distributed flyers, put up posters and banners with important information about the disease and engaged in dialogues with people through social media channels.

Yellow fever outbreak was declared in DRC in March. The outbreak originated from neighbouring Angola and quickly spread to the DRC, affecting people in six of the country's provinces, including the capital city Kinshasa, where more than 7.7 million people have been vaccinated following the launch of a preventive vaccination campaign.The first round of the vaccination campaign, which started in May until the first week of June, was carried out in the Massina I health zone, where many cases were registered.

"When the vaccination campaign started in May, I was pregnant and could not receive the vaccine. Unfortunately, a few weeks later, I was diagnosed with yellow fever and was taken to the N'dili health centre where I received treatment," said Bioma Julie.

"My unhappy experience was a lesson for the rest of my family on the dangers of the disease, if proper preventive measures are not taken.

When a Red Cross team visited us and provided detailed information and advice on how to protect ourselves from the disease, my whole family decided to go in for the vaccination including my hesitant husband," added Julie

The Red Cross of DRC mobilized 3600 volunteers to increase awareness on yellow fever among vulnerable communities and encourage them to get vaccinated.

"From the onset of the operation, our volunteers were going door-to-door visiting vulnerable families to talk to them about the risks of yellow fever, monitoring and identifying new cases in the communities, as well as explaining how to prevent vector-borne diseases," said Dr Balelia Wema Jean Faustin, health coordinator of the Red Cross of the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

Violette Lakulu is one of the most experienced Red Cross volunteer In the social mobilization team. She spent hours in the Massina I health zone, where she delivered awareness messages to households, at places of worship and markets.

"It was crucial for us to talk directly with people. We realized that many people did not know what yellow fever was all about. We also identified people with physical disabilities who needed assistance. Depending on the situation, we help to arrange transport for them to get to the vaccination sites or give their home address to the nearest vaccination centre so that they could get vaccinated through a house visit," said Violette.

Outbreak under control

The World Health Organization (WHO) announced recently that the yellow fever outbreak is now under control following the vaccination campaigns in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Angola. In the Democratic Republic of the Congo, no new cases have been recorded since 12 July.

As of 1 September, the number of people vaccinated in Kinshasa province exceeded the targeted number by 102 per cent, across the 32 targeted health zones."We are grateful to the Red Cross volunteers who have been able to mobilize 53 per cent of the population of Kinshasa during this reactive vaccination campaign. So far, the positive results are confirming the tremendous work done by Red Cross volunteers," said Dr Viviane Nzeusseu, IFRC health coordinator for Central Africa country cluster support team.

While the yellow fever outbreak is now under control, there are cholera and measles outbreaks in many areas of the country.

As part of the Red Cross response to the ongoing outbreaks, the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) has launched an emergency appeal for 2.2 million Swiss francs to enable the Red Cross of DRC to deliver emergency health support, provide safe water, adequate sanitation and promote safe hygiene practices.

With technical support and coordination with other partners National Societies provided by the IFRC Central Africa office, the DRC Red Cross is preparing for the upcoming cholera and measles vaccination campaigns, which will be launched at the end of September, despite the recent civil unrest in Kinshasa.

The appeal is currently 55 per cent funded. "Funding gap remains a major concern as the country goes through a re-emergence of cholera, which has a high case fatality rate, in endemic and epidemic areas," said Dr Viviane Nzeusseu .

Friday, September 2, 2016

(CNN)The World Health Organization said Wednesday that the ongoing yellow fever outbreak in Angola and the Democratic Republic of Congo still does not constitute a public health emergency at this time, but caution is still necessary.

"Although the yellow fever situation is improving, the event continues to be serious and requires sustained, controlled measures," said Oyewale Tomori, chairman of the WHO Emergency Committee and a professor of virology at Redeemer's University in Nigeria.

All told, the WHO estimates that there have been 6,000 suspected cases and 1,000 laboratory-confirmed cases of yellow fever, a viral hemorrhagic disease transmitted by infected mosquitoes. More than 400 people have died since the epidemic began in December.

But there is reason to be optimistic. Though suspected cases continue to be reported, the last confirmed cases were reported June 23 in Angola and July 12 in Congo, said Dr. Peter Salama, executive director of the WHO Health Emergency Program.

"The health and epidemiology are pointing in the right direction," Salama said.

The epicenter of the outbreak was Angola, which first reported cases in its capital city, Luanda, in late December. From there, the fever spread to 16 of the country's 18 provinces. In Congo, the outbreak was declared April 23, with health officials confirming cases in eight of its 26 provinces, some imported directly from Angola.

Symptoms include fever, headache, jaundice, muscle pain, nausea, vomiting and fatigue. A small proportion of patients develop severe symptoms, and nearly half of these die within 10 days.

Salama said the WHO's yellow fever vaccination stockpile remains intact, with 6 million current doses ready to be accessed in case it's needed. The WHO official said the stockpile is expected to total 20 million doses by the end of this year thanks to scaled-up production by the four major companies that manufacture the effective inoculation.

Both of the WHO representatives pointed to success in Kinshasa, the capital and largest city of Congo, where the health ministry and the WHO launched the most ambitious yellow fever vaccination campaign ever undertaken. They coordinated with Médecins sans Frontières, the International Federation of the Red Cross and UNICEF. "In just 10 days, 7.7 million people were vaccinated using fractionated doses," Tomori noted.

"Fractionated dosing," using just one-fifth the standard dose of the vaccine, was recommended this month by an advisory group as the best way to maximize the limited supply of vaccines, which requires at least six months to manufacture. Health officials had warned that a vaccine supply shortage could jeopardize the ability to end the outbreak.

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During the recent campaigns in both countries, Angola vaccinated 22 million people, and Congo inoculated 14 million people, Salama said. He said there have been "operational challenges" around getting vaccines to rural parts of the countries and the "unprecedented situation" of urban outbreaks. But he said the vaccination campaign had not been mismanaged.

"As the rainy season is imminent in Central and East Africa, we also have to be aware there may be further cases, there may be further outbreaks, and we need to remain vigilant and able to respond robustly," Salama said.

About Me

I am a pediatrician based at Mohali, a suburb of chandigarh, North India. I have my own virtual office at www.charakclinics.com; I have been a pediatrician since 1994. I hope to make ths blog a regular feature with tonnes of relevant info for parents, especially in India, because i feel that "informed parents are better parents". My interests include research in OPD practice, specifically new vaccines and travel medicine. I am a member of American Academy of Pediatrics, Indian Academy of Pediatrics, and various travel organizations like International Society for Travel Medicine (ISTM), American Society of Tropical Medicine & Hygiene (ASTMH), International Association for Medical Assistance to Travelers (IAMAT), and British & Global Travel Health Association (BGTHA)